Hoe.



No. 853,1?19. PATENTED MAY?, 19o?.` J. s. LESTER.

HOE.

Axfrmornon FILED FEB. zo. 1907.

UNITED STATES JAMES S. LESTER, OF ATLANTA, GEORGIA.

HOE.

Specification of' Letters Patent.

Patented May '7, 1907.

Application filed February 20, 1907. Serial No. 358,340.

T @ZZ whom, it T11/ay concern:

Be it known that I, JAMES S. LESTER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Atlanta, in the county of Fulton and State of Georgia, have invented a new and useful Hoe, of which the following is a specification.

The invention relates to improvements in hoes.

The object of the present invention is to improve `the construction of hoes, and to provide a simple, inexpensive and efficient one of great strength and durability, capable of adjustment to arrange any one of its plurality of edges in position for cutting, and

adapted when the cutting edges, throughA use, become beveled at the rear, of being reversed to arrange the beveling at the front face of the blade, whereby the hoe will be self-sharpening.

With these and other objects in view, the invention consists in the construction and novel combination of parts hereinafter fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawing, and pointed out in the claims hereto appended; it being understood that various changes in the form, proportion, size and minor details of construction, within the scope of the claims, may be resorted to without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

In the drawing :Figure 1 is a perspective view of a hoe, constructed in accordance with this invention. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the same. Fig. 3 is a detail sectional view, taken substantially on the line :l5- of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a detail view of the clamping member. Fig. 5 is a detail view, showing the manner of interlocking the blade with the end of the shank. Fig. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view of a hoe, showing a modified form of the shank.

Like numerals of reference designate corre- .sponding parts in all the figures of the drawing.

1 designates a rectangular hoe blade, having its edges 2 beveled at the front .face to provide sharp cutting edges, which are adapted to be successively brought to the bottom of the hoe blade to enable all four of the cutting edges to be used, and when'the blades becomes beveled at the rear face, through use, it is adapted to be reversed, as hereinafter explained, to arrange the beveling at the front face, whereby the hoe is rendered selfsharpening. The hoe blade is provided at the center with a rectangular opening 3 for the reception of a rectangular lug 4 of the shank 5 of the hoe. The shank 5 is provided at its upper end with an angularly disposedtang 6, which is embedded in a suitable handle 7. The rectangular lug 4 is located at the inner or rear face of thelower end of the shank, which has its lower terminal 8 beveled and projecting beyond the lug for supporting the hoe blade at the bottom of the central opening. The polygonal lug of the lower end of the shank is maintained in its interlocked relation with the hoe blade by means of a screw 9, which engages a threaded perforation of the lug, as clearly illustrated in Fig. 2 of the drawing. The threaded opening pierces the lug and the shank, and the screw is provided with a head for engaging the hoe blade. The head of the screw projects beyond and engages the hoe blade at each of the side faces of the lug. When the screw is removed, the lower end of the shank may be detached from the hoe blade to permit the latter to be either adjusted or reversed.

The shank is provided with a flat inner or rear face 10 to form a seat for theblade, and it has a threaded upper portion 11, extending above the blade and receiving a nut 12, which retains a clamping member 13 in engagement with the upper edge of the blade. The clamping member, which has an eye 14 to re'- ceive the shank, is provided with a groove 15 into which the upper edge of the blade extends, a'nd which has an inclined top wall 16 to conform to the coniiguration of the beveled 'cutting edge, as clearly illustrated in Figs. 2 and 4 ofthe drawing. The groove 15 forms a clamping jaw, which extends laterally from opposite sides of the eye 14. When the nut is loosened and the screw removed, the blade may be readily detached from the shank.

In Fig. 6 of the drawing is illustrated a modied form of the shank, the lower terminal 17 of which extends through the central opening of the blade and engages the front face thereof. The projecting blade-engaging portion of the lower end of the shank is approximately L-shaped and consists of a neck, which extends through the central opening of the blade, and a lip, which projects downwardly in front of the opening.

Having thus fully described my invention,

IOO

what I claim as new and desire to secure by l taining the lug thereof in the opening of the 2o Letters Patent, is

1. A-hoe comprising a blade, a handle having a shank detaohably connected at its outer end With the blade and provided at its inner portion With screw threads, a clamping mernber having an eye to receive the shank and provided With a groove -for the reception of one edge of the blade, and a nut engaging the screw threads of the shank for holding the clamping member in engagement With the blade.

2. A hoe comprising a blade provided With a polygonal opening, a shank having a polygonal lug at its outer end to it Within the said opening, the outer end of the shank being extended beyond the opening to engage the blade, a fastening device engaging the blade and connected With the shank for reblade, and means also carried by the shank for engaging the blade at one edge thereof.

3. A hoe Comprising a blade, a handle having a shank fitting against the rear face of the blade and detaehably connected at its outer end With the center of the blade, said shank being flattened to form a seat for the blade, and clamping means carried by the inner portion of the shank and detaohably engaging the edge of the blade.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my oWn, I have hereto affixed my signature in the presence of two Witnesses.

JAMES S. LESTER.

Witnesses: I

JAS. F. ALEXANDER, J. P. WINDSOR. 

